im ashamed to admit it, but...

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ZAGGIN

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im ashamed to admit it, but i had to use b-spec bob to win the final world championship in the professional hall. he did a damn good job too! winning 70pts out of a possible 100, driving the toyota gt-one black beauty. as it turns out ive trained the guy well! i do plan to complete this championship myself at a later date, but i think the lmps are ridiculous lousy handling cars, too jittery for my liking! im more of a gt300/gt500 kinda guy, anything over 500bhp is too powerful. has anyone else used b-spec bob to complete this championship? what are your opinions of his approach to racing, etc?
 
Why be ashamed? It is a feature of the game and should be used. It also can very instructive, I used Bob to win this series for me using the Nissan R30 Race car, I stuck it into ****-pit view and watched the lines he took.... took note of where he pushed and where he took his time.

I then went back and tried for myself, I did not win but I was better than I expected to be. I will keep at it until I win it for myself now, but at least the Extreme Hall is open to me now.

It IS a hard championship, and it does take some really aggresive driving. This is where a steering wheel with analogue foot-pedals pays for itself... it is very hard to do just using the pad... so don't feel bad, you still had to manage the race and decide on pit strategy.
 
I've won that one in A-spec with my Minolta Toyota 88C-V. Those cars indeed don't handle well.

I had some close races in that cup, luckily I won the cup, won 6 races I think in the championship, had a 5th place on the Nurburgring and a 4th place at Le Mans I believe.

@ Cadfael: Doing that championship with a R390 GT1? (Guess you mean that car)
Wow, that's good. Because the R390 GT1 is not as good as the other Group C cars, which is weird, because the R390 GT1 was the fastest car in GT3. :crazy:
 
I'll most likely be havin Mr. B-Spec doin the races for me for this one too, the LMP cars don't really appeal to me at all, and driving them is more of a pain than a pleasure. Especially when trying to play catch up with the C9. I did A-Spec the races afterwards just to prove to myself that I could do it, but i'll admit that I did use the F1, which yes, was cheating, but I still did it. :sly:
 
10 years ago, i woulda creamed this game! i was at the height of my powers with GT1, and GT2. since then, i have noticed a gradual decline in my skills (reactions), and now im what you might call a 'sunday driver'. dont get me wrong, i can mix it if i need to, but i can feel my gt kung-fu slowly slipping away from me. i guess old age has to catch up with all of us at some point! im not a racer any more, just a gran turismo enthusiast.
 
I'm so frustrated. Tried to B=Spec this race several times with the black LMPs to no avail. I never get enough pts. to take first in the end, the Minolta always gets it.

I shouldn't have to, but I'm saving up for the Audi R8. Will I have any problems B-specing it then? :nervous:
 
First of all, ZAGGIN, don't worry about it. This isn't a computer victory, this is your teammate doing the work for you. You have no reason to be ashamed. ZAGGIN, it's perfectly fine to use B-Spec. There are races on tracks I think I wouldn't be able to win with. With the much tougher races, winning isn't as simple like in times past. I don't care if you do a freaking 24-hour race all in A-Spec on your own. What matters is that you won the race. Having said that, don't worry about A-Spec points. What matters is that you won the race using any resource available to you that ISN'T a cheating device.

So I tip my Texas cowboy hat to you, ZAGGIN. Okay, I'm not REALLY a cowboy, but you get the idea.
 
ZAGGIN
10 years ago, i woulda creamed this game! i was at the height of my powers with GT1, and GT2. since then, i have noticed a gradual decline in my skills (reactions), and now im what you might call a 'sunday driver'. dont get me wrong, i can mix it if i need to, but i can feel my gt kung-fu slowly slipping away from me. i guess old age has to catch up with all of us at some point! im not a racer any more, just a gran turismo enthusiast.
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You haven't gotten any worse, the games have gotten better.... I'm in a similar boat.
 
i remember when i had the game I tried that race many times, i even gave bob a calsonic to race with and still came in 6th everytime. >/
 
I still feel young at heart when playing the new GT game though, I remember when GT2 came out. It was around Christmas time 1999 and it was the only thing I wanted, so I asked my mom for it for Christmas. I was 23 and living 1500 miles away and it came with FedEx and a box of fruitcake. I actually still have that fruitcake around here somewhere........ :eek:
 
I think you're missing out on a great race series there.

I did it in an unmodified Minolta with all driving aids turned off. And that was quite a lot of fun. I don't think anyone should miss out on that.

Imho, the B spec mode is just like playing Progress Quest. I can't see the point in watching the game play itself.

I use the B spec mode only for the endurance races... because frankly, I have a life and I'm not going to play the game for even one 24 hour race... let alone 3. So to me it's using a stupid boring feature to handle another stupid boring feature. And it just means I don't get to use my play station for 24 hours. I don't know why they thought that would be fun.

Rather than including B spec, they should have worked to ensure that all of the races would be entertaining to play. But then again, I suppose the counter point is some people won't like some races... like there are some kids on here who loved spending their entire weekends doing a 24 hour race. Or on the opposite end, the starter of this thread who didn't like the final race with the le mans cars.


Btw... I'd say the key to understanding a car like the Minolta is that it's so heavily affected by its giant wings. When it's going fast, it sticks like glue. When it's going slow, it becomes a normal car. The transistion is so severe that it can really throw people off if they aren't expecting it.

- Skant
 
I've been thinking about this thread, and in all honesty, there's no right or wrong way to play GT4 in A or B spec. To me, they're two sides of the same coin - one (a-spec) is your straightforward driving sim, the other (b-spec) is a driving management sim. And B-spec is (in it's own way) as much as a challenge as A-spec at times... take the F-1 race series for example... my Stig (if you've seen BBC's Top Gear you'll know why I call him that... ;) ) couldn't be left at one particular speed during most races... I had to know when to change him on his scale of 1-5 from 3 to 4, to 5 to 2... (infinion being one such track) and at 3 times normal game speed, that requires some pretty good reflexes on it's own! ;)

I also enjoyed the strategy element... such as running less fuel, to make the tyres last longer, to give me an advantage on pitting etc... sometimes it actually got pretty nerve racking as I saw one particular car running my Stig real close... especially when the tyres start to burn down...

I'd like a sliding bar on his speed next time though... and please PD, if you're gonna make me do 24 hr races with him, FOR GODS SAKE STOP SWITCHING BACK TO X1 RACE SPEED MODE EVERY TIME HE PITS!!!
 
Am I the only one who sees the B-Spec racer as my "teammate?" I seriously disagree about saying B-Spec plays itself. Letting the game play itself would be that you don't direct his/her pace. You still are in the race even if your B-Spec coutnerpart is doing all the race. Like I said earlier, if I can't win a race in A-Spec, MAYBE my B-Spec racer can do better than me. I'm not admitting I'm the sorriest GT gamer in the world, but everyone needs a helping hand. Do the game in B-Spec (entirely impossible, because you'll have to A-Spec the Special Condition, License Tests, and Driving Mission races). By the way, if the game plays itself, the Demo Driver would win the test for you rather than show you how to drive the course. That's why I avoid saying that the B-Spec racer plays the game for you. So to turn the tables, if B-Spec plays the game for you in GT4, how do you explain Forza's "Drivatar" feature?

That's why I stated to ZAGGIN to celebrate the win and move on. You can't call somebody out just because they don't A-Spec every race until the PS2 meltdown to nuts and bolts. That's stupid in my view. You win any way you can. If there wasn't a way to win the race without GameSharking your way through it all, PD wouldn't have made the racing impossible to beat. Hell, you could even win the Super License final test from GT3 with the Toyota GT-One in Monte Carlo.

I talk to some people about long races in GT games, and they can't really do them. Some work, some don't have enough time, and then some simply don't like the races. If you combined all the Endurances in GT4 (excluding 1000 Miles!), you're looking at over 80 to maybe 100 hours of endurance racing. That's almost as much as beating "Grand Theft Auto: San Andreas," and then re-playing it allto get to San Fierro or the countryside again. B-Spec is a great feature that novices and veterans can use and makes people no less of who they are. Use it when you feel you can't win on your own. Consider track, competition, distance, then make your move. ANYONE can win. No, really. ANYONE can.
 
If PD had added a save feature in the endurance races we would probably get most of these races done in A Spec. Instead they offered us B spec with a 3 times speed increase.
I use B Spec with me instructing my driver.
I agree with John's comments above. He summed up why most of us use B Spec perfectly.
 
My B-Spec driver wasn't as aggressive, or as good as I was. So I had to A-Spec the whole championship, I got first place in 8 of the races, 2nd place in one, and 5th in another.
 
I used the Minolta Toyota 88C-V mixing both A-Spec and B-Spec, when I was not racing on A-Spec I would still run the practice to nail the pole and then give my B-Spec driver a good start. Another Minolta Toyota 88C-V ran in the event but most of the time he got screwed with stupid pit strategy and he finished 3rd in the standings. :sly: PlayStation C60 LMP '04 is the one that took second overall, the Minolta was eating up it's tires alot faster so the C60 was gaining there. Only race I recall not getting a podium was Hong Kong, B-Spec driver was just ****ing up bad. Took 7 wins, one 2nd and one 3rd. Made 5 races on A-Spec and 5 races on B-Spec, overall a pretty decent and fun challenge. :cheers:
 
Sorry. I can't agree.

Challenge in games is slowly becoming a thing of the past as companies discover that most players aren't interested in challenge at all. They only want a cheap ego boost from winning. They want to feel like they accomplished something noteworthy even though they never spent any actual effort. Every year, game companies get better at making the talentless feel like they have talent.

B-spec Bob is an extension of that philosophy. Now you don't even have to bother turning a steering wheel, and you can pat yourself on the back for your incredible talents and amazing victory. It was so tough. Watching B-spec Bob zoom around the track was such a difficult challenge that you had to eat four ham sandwiches and take a nap just to keep your energy up.

Whew... this race driving sure is hard work...


:rolleyes:

- Skant
 
Skant
Sorry. I can't agree.

Challenge in games is slowly becoming a thing of the past as companies discover that most players aren't interested in challenge at all. They only want a cheap ego boost from winning. They want to feel like they accomplished something noteworthy even though they never spent any actual effort....

- Skant
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I'd have to argee with skant to a degree. Yes I used Mr B to do the Nurb 24h, but that wasn't because of my lack of talent, I knew I would win by laps (And i wanted an F1) But I don't have the time to spend 24h racing.

But the GT world, it's about 30minutes a race, and you can save after everyone! If you can't win it, either

A: Get a better car (I did it in the Fairlady Z Concept LM, that is hardly a R390 or a Minolta)
B: Become a better driver (Which you won't become by B-Spec)

If everytime you find a race to hard you B-Spec'ed it, what is the point of the game?! Who wants to buy a game that all you have to do is hit 'Triangle' (Overtake), and 'across 1-4 times' (change speed) and then watch these letters move around a line.

And yes I will do the nurb 24h in A-Spec. School holdays in a few weeks, maybe I'll get a nice red F1 to sit along side my stunning orange arrows
👍

JohnBM01
With the much tougher races, winning isn't as simple like in times past... What matters is that you won the race.....
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Not to be offensive, but how is it not as simple as in times past? You still go around a track, it's not like they have added landmines and spike strips on the road. If anything I have found GT4s races easier then most of the others.

Also, you didn't win the race, the computer did. That'd be like saying if Michael Phelps or Ian Thorpe wore your speedos and won gold, you actually won.
 
ZAGGIN
10 years ago, i woulda creamed this game! i was at the height of my powers with GT1, and GT2. since then, i have noticed a gradual decline in my skills (reactions), and now im what you might call a 'sunday driver'. dont get me wrong, i can mix it if i need to, but i can feel my gt kung-fu slowly slipping away from me. i guess old age has to catch up with all of us at some point! im not a racer any more, just a gran turismo enthusiast.
Click to expand...


oddly enough.. I have acually gotten better with GT4. Just watching my B-spec driver and critiquing him has made me twice the driver i was in GT1-3. 👍
 
I'd have to argee with skant to a degree. Yes I used Mr B to do the Nurb 24h, but that wasn't because of my lack of talent, I knew I would win by laps (And i wanted an F1) But I don't have the time to spend 24h racing.
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Actually, I totally agree with you there. 24 hour races are intensely boring and tedious. I don't even like watching them on Speed channel.

I mean... I love racing... I spend far to much money on it in RL... and yet, I find spinning around the same track for more than a couple of hours at a time to be intensely boring.

As far as I know, everyone who is A-spec'ing the 24 hour races is always doing it in a faster car that has no chance of losing anyway... so why even bother when winning is a foregone conclusion?

This is generally true in RL too. It's usually pretty obvious who the winners are going to be after the first two hours of the race. Only terminal break downs may change the results. The races are usually won with a margin of many laps.

Rarely, it comes down to a close race at the end and then it's exciting.

oddly enough.. I have acually gotten better with GT4. Just watching my B-spec driver and critiquing him has made me twice the driver i was in GT1-3.
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There is that. However, the CPU isn't actually a very good driver. Learning from its race lines could still help a lot of people, but ultimately you'll be learning bad lines that you'll have to unlearn later as you progress.

My suggestion would be to watch the races on Speed channel instead. Especially when they show the in car camera footage. Some of the racers also make the entire race's in car footage available on the web... download these and watch them. Especially listen for the use of the throttle and watch for use of the brakes... people are often the most mystified by the pedals.

- Skant
 
skant
Challenge in games is slowly becoming a thing of the past as companies discover that most players aren't interested in challenge at all. They only want a cheap ego boost from winning. They want to feel like they accomplished something noteworthy even though they never spent any actual effort. Every year, game companies get better at making the talentless feel like they have talent.
Click to expand...

i agree will agree with you on this one in principle, but i choose to use bob because i found the race difficult, and not because i wanted to pat masage my ego. i know i never won that chamionship with my own skill. it was a means to an end really. i needed access to the extreme hall, but my skills were not good enough to get there alone. so i asked my mate bob to do it for me, and he did. i will return to this championship myself at a later date because i want maximum a-spec points, but at the moment, i'm happy ive circumvented the many frustrating races i had to endure trying to crack the championship.
 
I love Bob, don't take him away from me. He is my profit creator. I put him in the German Touring Car Championship while I was watching NBA. :dopey: , by the time the game is finished, I will have enough money to buy few of those LM cars to fill up my car collection. So far only missing 3 or them, way to go Bob. Your future is bright, i might try to collect all the F1s with different color. (believe there are 11 total) :dopey:
 

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